E-Learning has become increasingly popular as it becomes more efficient, and it’s not difficult to see why. The training potential for an interactive medium that can be accessed the same way around the world instantly without the need for specialized trainers has been a dream of many companies for decades. More corporations are finding these days that providing e-learning training courses, especially in workplace safety, is not only easier and less costly, it actually is producing better results among employees as far as retention and replication goes. If anything, the old system of hiring a trainer to travel around the country or even world in order to give everybody consistent methods and information isn’t nearly as powerful as this otherwise less personal system.

A Hybrid System

What many companies are finding is that the best way that they can use e-learning to train their employees on workplace safety is a hybrid system in which they have a manager or assigned trainer there to guide them through the training which is otherwise accessed on their computers. This particular system serves to give employees the benefit of having a physical person there to help them along and to answer questions, but it relies on the computer to do most of the actual teaching. This eliminates problems such as poor teaching skills on the part of the manager and forgotten units.

The hybrid system also serves to keep the employees engaged. By shifting their attention periodically between the computer and a manager, it helps prevent them from mentally “tuning out,” which too much information from a single source can cause. The introduction of e-learning to workplace safety training has gone a long way toward helping employees actually pay attention.

Different Approaches to Learning

Previous to the introduction of e-learning to training, learning was fairly rigid in what it could do. Mostly, to teach in a workplace setting involved lecturing to a group of employees, possibly with the addition of slides either on an overhead or through Powerpoint. Sometimes there were worksheets, but they were pretty ineffective and often just mindless fill-in-the-blanks where the appropriate buzz word completed a sentence defining it. These were then taken back to desks where they would stay until the employee left the company.

E-learning, however, gives a whole new set of options for learning. Suddenly, solutions like game-based learning were easier to implement, so that trainees could play something enjoyable that also helps them learn the relevant material. Scenarios could be built on the e-learning platform that guided employees through the proper procedures but allowed them to make their own choices.

E-learning also doesn’t have to be strictly about completing modules. In many ways, it can actually continue throughout the workday thanks to mobile devices. If a person is unsure how to use a particular type of training equipment, simply scanning a QR code can bring them to a training video or instructions. Mobile devices can also be used to report unsafe behaviors to not only keep the workplace secure, but also to allow the e-learning software to craft experiences from that example for everybody to use.

There are a number of applications for e-learning in workplace safety training, and that’s why more and more companies are using it. The system is designed to increase knowledge and retention, and is far more efficient than previous approaches. New learning techniques can be employed and training doesn’t have to be a few hours in a special room, quickly forgotten in emergencies. The increase in e-learning is sharp and obvious, and it’s also fairly clear to see why. It simply produces better, safer employees for whatever company utilizes it.